


Of Roller Coasters and Love At First Sight

by thorbiased



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, Thor (Movies)
Genre: Alternate Universe, F/M, Fluff, Meet-Cute, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, no powers au
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-06-24
Updated: 2019-06-24
Packaged: 2020-05-18 15:59:07
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,696
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19337800
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thorbiased/pseuds/thorbiased
Summary: Someone came up behind her, talking a bit too loud on the phone. Brunnhilde snuck a glance over her shoulder, pretending to look for something in the distance as she checked out the man behind her. The man was tall, all biceps and a lean frame. His hair was short and messy, a few short curls framing a handsome face and shockingly blue eyes that were piercing even in the shade of the awning they stood under.Brunnhilde quickly turned around, her cheeks hot. Singles will be paired, a taunting voice in her head reminded her.Based on a Tumblr post I saw that had been screenshoted and posted to Twitter, talking about a Roller Coaster Meet Cute AU. About a month later I produced this!





	Of Roller Coasters and Love At First Sight

_ Singles will be paired _ , the decorative sign next to the line for  _ The Wormhole _ announced with bright purple letters on a galactic-looking background. Brunnhilde shook her head at the cheesiness, but a smile pulled at her lips. She hadn’t been to the park since she was a little kid, and that little kid inside her was having a field day. 

There was a joke to be made about singles being paired, and if she wasn’t one of those singles, she would’ve made it to her partner. But she was alone. Her college buddy Bruce had been the one to invite her to the park, but he wasn’t one for roller coasters. Which left her alone and waiting for an hour while he gorged himself on cotton candy and peanut butter fudge at a jungle-themed candy shop. 

She wasn’t complaining, though. The day was nice and warm—not hot. They’d come on a school day, meaning the normal crowd of screaming children and annoyed parents was thin. She looked downright sexy in her outfit—high-waisted black shorts and a white crop top with gold and purple-tinted sunglasses perched on top her double braids. Things were great. 

The line moved forward a few steps, which moved her into an awning. The roof was painted neon colors—bright pink and yellow and green and blue. White speckles of stars cast lights over the crowd. Brunnhilde couldn’t help but be a little enamored. It was pretty, very eighties, and fun. This ride was a new one. It hadn’t been around when she’d been a chubby kid riding with her parents. She was excited.

Again, they moved up by about six people. The actual coaster began inside a building designed to look like a spaceship, but eventually broke through to the outdoors halfway through the ride. (According to the YouTube video she’d watched, that was; Brunnhilde never went into something without knowing what to expect.) But that building was at least a dozen people away, so Brunnhilde had a bit more time to wait. 

Someone came up behind her, talking a bit too loud on the phone. Brunnhilde snuck a glance over her shoulder, pretending to look for something in the distance as she checked out the man behind her. The man was tall, all biceps and a lean frame. His hair was short and messy, a few short curls framing a handsome face and shockingly blue eyes that were piercing even in the shade of the awning they stood under. 

Brunnhilde quickly turned around, her cheeks hot.  _ Singles will be paired _ , a taunting voice in her head reminded her. She stared hard at the woman in front of her’s back and tried to ignore the man behind her’s conversation and his face and his eyes— _ oh, his eyes.  _

“I’m at the roller coaster,” he said, his voice warm and deep, “I’ll come find you later. Promise.” 

He must’ve hung up because he went silent after that. He went silent until he tapped on her shoulder, nearly giving her a heart attack. Brunnhilde jumped to face him with wide eyes, her hand flattened against her chest. 

“Sorry,” he said, laughing a little, “I was just going to ask if you’d ridden this before?”

Brunnhilde forced herself to focus. She cleared her throat, wishing her heart would stop beating  _ so freaking fast _ . “Uh, no, actually. Sorry, but I watched a YouTube video.”

He nodded and shoved his hands in the pockets of his jeans. “Okay, great. This is going to sound a little strange, but does it go upside down?” 

Brunnhilde blinked. “Upside down?” she asked him.

The man bobbed his head. “Yeah,” he admitted a big sheepishly, “I’ll get sick if I go upside down.”

Brunnhilde smiled. So he was hot  _ and  _ cute. That was...problematic. She thought back to the video she’d watched right after Bruce asked her to come a few days before. It was a little fuzzy. She couldn’t remember everything, but she was pretty sure the ride didn’t go upside down. 

“Uh, I think you’ll be okay,” she said, “but don’t hold me to it. If you get sick, I don’t want to be sued.” 

The man chuckled, then. She liked the way his eyes crinkled around the edges when he did. “I won’t sue you,” he laughed, “On my honor. I’m Thor.”

Brunnhilde nearly laughed at the way he stuck his hand out for her to shake. He did it with such enthusiasm. Still, she slipped her hand in his and shook it firmly. “Brunnhilde. Nice to meet you.”

“So, is this your first time at the park?” Thor asked as the line moved forward. 

“I used to come here a lot when I was a kid, but college, and then...normal adult life,” she said, gesturing as if to say  _ I haven’t had time for roller coasters _ . “But my friend invited me, so here I am.”

“Yeah, me and my brother used to come all the time when we were young, but then…” Thor’s voice dropped off with a crack. He shook his head. “We didn’t come back for a while, I guess. But we’re here now. That’s why I’m alone, actually. My brother hates roller coasters.”

Brunnhilde couldn’t help wondering what had kept Thor and his brother from coming to the park, but it was certainly not her place to ask. She stirred the conversation in another direction. 

“I’ve heard this ride is pretty intense,” she said lightly, nodding towards the building they were steady growing closer to. “Sure you can handle it?”

Thor laughed. “Of course,” he said, flexing comically, “I’m a manly man. Unafraid. Unflinching. Masculine.” 

Brunnhilde clamped her hand over her mouth to keep from sounding like a bloody idiot as a stream of laughter tried to escape her. It was a problem, really, the effect he was having on her. It wasn’t even that funny. Her stomach was doing backflips.  _ Ridiculous _ , she thought.

“As long as it doesn’t go upside down, right?” she teased, tilting her head at him. 

Thor’s cheeks flushed pink. “Right,” he said, folding his arms over his chest. His eyes flitted over to the building, and he nodded towards the line that had moved a section up. “They’re leaving us behind.”

Brunnhilde and Thor jogged to catch up with the line, and they stood on the steps to the building. 

“Next time we move, we’ll be on the ride,” he said, lightly punching her arm, “Are you excited?”

Brunnhilde nodded. “Yeah, totally. Are you?” 

“Of course,” he said. He smiled without showing his teeth, like an emoji or something. God, he was cute. “Even if I wasn’t, I still have to prove my brother wrong. He told me I wouldn’t make it without vomiting.”

Brunnhilde hummed. “Funny, I told my friend the same thing. Only he listened.” 

Thor hummed. “Maybe I should be more like your friend,” he said, shaking his head. 

The line shifted up, and Thor practically lit up. “This is it,” he said, beaming. He grabbed the door and held it open for her, sweeping the air with his arm. “Mylady.”

Brunnhilde snorted, but obliged him, bowing dramatically as she walked up the short steps into the building that housed the coaster. Inside was even more outrageously space-themed than outside. The colors were blinding, but gorgeous. Brunnhilde gaped at it, her eyes sparkling with wonder, as she spun in her place to see it all. The ceiling was painted a deep blue, with dangling planets hanging down close enough for Brunnhilde to touch. They glowed from the inside out, bathing the waiting crowds in a warm glow. 

Brunnhilde looked over her shoulder at Thor, who was looking at the decorations with equal awe. His lips were partly open, and his bright blue eyes were aglow under the lights of the planets and stars around him. He looked ethereal. 

Brunnhilde blinked a few times and turned away from him. Butterflies—no, manta rays—were flapping around in her belly. This was ridiculous. She was really falling for this man, whom she just met. This was ridiculous. 

“Welcome to the  _ Wormhole _ ,” a bright voice announced over loudspeakers, “a galactic adventure!”

Thor shook his head as if he were clearing the stars from his eyes. “We’re almost there,” he whispered to Brunnhilde, “You ready?”

Brunnhilde bobbed her head. “As I’ll ever be. Are you?”

Thor shrugged. “I suppose. If I’m being honest, my stomach feels like it’s trying to crawl its way out of my mouth. Is that a medical condition?”

“It might be,” she said, “I’ll have to google that one. Sounds serious though. Are you sure you’re up for this?

“I’m already in line, now,” Thor said, heaving a long sigh, as if he were truly annoyed that he had to ride the roller coaster, “Besides, don’t you need a partner?”

Brunnhilde didn’t know why, but that made the manta rays in her stomach do backflips. Her cheeks flushed with heat. “I guess I do,” she breathed. 

“The lines moved up,” a man behind them said gruffly. He all but pushed the two of them forward, glaring. 

Brunnhilde mumbled an apology and scurried up to meet the end of the line. Thor was frowning slightly, watching the cars speed off into the darkness of the ride. He absentmindedly fiddled with the bracelets on his wrist. A nervous tick, she guessed.

“Hey,” she said gently, placing her hand on his bicep, “You good?” 

Thor swallowed thickly. “No, I’m terrified. But I’m going to prove Loki wrong. Even if it kills me.”

Brunnhilde lifted an eyebrow. “Why didn’t Loki come ride, then? Instead of daring you to?”

Thor’s eyes widened as if he hadn’t considered that. He shook his head. “He’s always been able to rile me. I don’t think I’ve ever turned down his dares.”

Brunnhilde just shook her head. “If you throw up on me,” she warned, shaking her finger like some too-strict school teacher, “I’m going to throw up on you. And then we’ll never be able to look each other in the eye again.”

Thor gave her a smile that made her heart beat a little faster. Those blue eyes crinkled around the edges, and the light dusting of freckles on his nose jumped out. “Well, we just met. We could always walk away from the situation and never think about it again.” 

He said as if he had no intention of actually doing that. Hope stirred in Brunnhilde’s chest. She was no stranger to guys who just wanted to flirt and go. And she wasn’t above a little playful flirting. But it warmed her heart to think maybe this guy was more than that. Brunnhilde had never been one to believe in love at first sight, but the longer she watched Thor smile like a bloody idiot at her, the more she thought she might’ve been the victim of it. 

“Maybe I don’t want to do that,” Brunnhilde said, all in a rush like her brain would’ve stopped her from saying it if she’d waited a second longer. 

Thor’s grin widened. 

“Seriously,  _ move up _ !” the same man shouted, throwing his hands in the air. 

“Sorry,” they chorused, jogging up to the rest of the line. 

Brunnhilde mentally counted the people ahead of them, then gasped and clutched Thor’s forearm. “We’re next,” she said, beaming. She shuffled her feet, her sneakers squeaking against the tile floor.

They mounted the short platform and nodded to the attendant as they climbed into the car. Brunnhilde pulled down the handles over her chest, almost perfectly in sync with Thor. The attendant, a college-aged girl with big curls and freckles on her brown skin, locked each guest into their spots. The locks clicked on she and Thor’s car with finality.

“Alright, you guys know the drill!” the attendant shouted, “Arms and legs inside the cars at all times! And have fun!” 

Thor was pale. “Is it too late to get off?” he asked, looking at her with pure terror in his eyes. 

Brunnhilde opened her mouth to tell him “no”, but that automated voice from early came on the speakers again. “Takeoff in...3...2…”

And they didn’t hear the one. The roller coaster lurched forward, pressing Brunnhilde flat against the back of her seat. A happy sound bubbled out of her throat. Adrenaline replaced anxiety as bright lights rushed past her head. The ride was just as beautiful on the inside as the outside. The coaster sped through the galaxy, passing constellations and meteorites. She screamed at the top of her lungs, a smile as wide as the Grand Canyon on her face. 

When they broke through to the outside, they began their ascent. Brunnhilde glanced over to Thor, who looked better than he had five minutes ago, at least. He looked shaken, yes, but not petrified.

“You good?” she asked, laughing. 

Thor nodded. “I guess. It’s not so bad, as long as…”

All the color drained from Thor’s face. His blue eyes fixed on something in the distance. “I thought you said it didn’t go upside down,” he said, his voice barely above a whisper. 

Brunnhilde cursed and leaned over to see a set of double loops awaiting them. Guilt rushed through her. “Oh my...Thor I’m so sorry. I didn’t know.”

Thor settled back against his seat, like he’d accepted his death and was at peace with it. “It’s fine. It’s my fault for not looking at the thing in the first place.” 

The cars crested the top of the incline, and sat there for a moment. Brunnhilde took in the view. It was beautiful. 

“Are you going to be okay?” she asked Thor, as the cart slowly slipped down the other side of the hump. Her stomach swirled. In a moment, talking would be impossible. 

Thor answered her, but she couldn’t hear it. The ground practically dropped out from under them, shooting the coaster towards the cold cement below. Brunnhilde screeched, and Thor did, too. Only Thor sounded genuinely afraid. 

All Brunnhilde could think was,  _ Please don’t throw up _ . 

The ride went quickly, at least for Brunnhilde. Thor had squeezed his eyes shut, and he was clutchin the bars of the ride like a vice. They approached the loops so quickly that she didn’t have time to worry about Thor, but they were through them in 3 seconds flat. The ride was over, then, coming to a screeching halt under a covered building. Their straps came undone automatically, sliding up with a  _ whoosh _ .

Thor was pale as a sheet, and clearly woozy. Brunnhilde climbed out of her seat and leaned back over to help him. He gripped her wrists tightly, and she had to practically drag him onto the platform. He leaned against her, and she grunted under his weight. 

“C’mon,” she said, gently guiding him away from the ride. They weaves through the exiting crowd and right to a bench next to a trash can. Thor collapsed, breathing heavy. 

“Are you going to hurl?” Brunnhilde asked, crossing her arms from where she stood, a safe difference away from him. “Because that’s fine, as long I’m standing over here.”

Thor laughed weakly. “I think... _ ugh _ , I think I’m okay.” 

“Okay, good,” she said, coming back to sit next to him. “You made it through the ride without throwing up, though. You proved your brother wrong.”

Thor nodded. “I did,” he said, smiling. He straightened himself, and exhaled long and slow. “What do you say we find your friend, and find my brother, hm? And hang out?”

Thor didn’t want to leave her as much as she didn’t want to leave him, then, she realized. A grin spread across her face. “Yeah, that’d be great,” she said, nodding. She pushed herself to her feet and held out her hand to help Thor up. “Let’s get you a Sprite.”

Brunnhilde had never believed in love at first sight. It was unrealistic, she’d said, that would never happen to a real person. But the last time she checked, she was very real. Thor was real, too. And as they walked through the theme park, their hands almost subconsciously finding each other, Brunnhilde fell in love. 

**Author's Note:**

> And then Thor found out that Brunnhilde’s friend was his friend, Bruce, and that they’d been connected all along. Please don’t forget to leave kudos and/or (preferably and) comments if you enjoyed. <3


End file.
